Blues battle in vain

Hornchurch too good for the Blues

A battling performance from the Blues saw them give a good account of themselves at second-placed AFC Hornchurch but it wasn’t enough to earn them any points.

The hosts had slightly the better of a goal-less first forty-five minutes, very nearly taking the lead midway through the half when their Brad Warner hit the top of the bar with a good effort from the edge of the box, after he had cut inside from the left.

The Blues had their fair share of the possession in the half but the hosts defended well such that the Blues were restricted to half chances; the best of which was a Jason Beck’s header from a Matt Thomson free-kick.

The second half largely followed the pattern of the first but, as it progressed, so the Blues began to pose more of a threat. Both Matt Thomson and Tommy Wade went close with decent efforts but, as so often happens in such circumstances, the Blues conceded a vital goal during their best spell of the game. A quick break in the 21st minute earned the hosts a corner and, from that corner, Nathan Cooper pounced on a loose ball to slam it home from close range.

In a game of so few chances this goal always had the potential to be decisive; and so it proved. The Blues threw everything forward in search of an equaliser but one was not forthcoming and, to ‘rub salt in the wound’ the highly-placed hosts added a second when Brad Warner broke away in the final minute to score a fine individual goal.